Electronic component and method of producing same

ABSTRACT

There are provided an electronic component production method and an electronic component by which the number of scribing processes can be reduced and the productivity can be made higher while surely preventing short circuiting during the production. An electronic component including a short ring residue portion and a method of producing the electronic component are provided.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an electronic component including anelectronic element disposed on a base member (e.g., substrate) and atake-out electrode connected to the electronic element, and a method ofproducing the same.

2. Related Background Art

An electronic component including an electronic element and a take-outelectrode is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.H07-181516 (JP 07-181516A).

JP 07-181516A relates to a thin film transistor panel and describestransistors, gate lines connected to the transistors, and terminalsthereof. The gate lines are connected to a conductive portion which isprovided along side surfaces of a base member and then separated fromthe conductive portion by scribing. The thin film transistor panel isdisposed on a large-size base member and respective liquid crystaldisplay elements are obtained by scribing.

JP 07-181516A describes that the respective liquid crystal displayelements are separated from the large-size base member. However, whensmall-size base members are to be obtained from the large-size basemember, it is necessary to perform scribing at least ten times. Here, ofthe ten-time scribing, eight-time scribing must be accompanied bytroublesome handling of the small-size base members. The presentinventors have paid attention to such complication.

That is, when four regions “A” are obtained from the large-size basemember such as shown in FIG. 2 of JP 07-181516A, firstly two-timescribing is performed for dividing the large-size base member into therespective regions. Because the conductive portion which is providedalong the side surfaces of the large-size base member is connected tothe gate lines, the conductive portion can be said to be a short ring.Therefore, when the short ring is cut before the first two-timescribing, prevention of a short circuiting cannot be ensured insubsequent steps. In other words, such cutting should not be performed.

Each of four components separated from one another through the firsttwo-time scribing still has a conductive portion.

Because the conductive portion is provided on two sides of each ofsmall-size base members of the four components, it is necessary toperform scribing for removing the conductive portion two times for eachcomponent.

The scribing for removing the conductive portion is performed after thelarge-size base member is divided into small-size base members.

Such scribing is performed for each of the four components, so that thetotal number of scribing processes is eight (2×4=8).

Therefore, it is necessary to perform scribing ten times in total(2+2×4=10). Further, of the ten-time scribing, eight-time scribing needsto be performed for each base member which has been subjected to thedivision to become the small piece. However, the handling of thesmall-size base members is complicated. Thus, the present inventors haveconsidered that there is a room for improving the productivity.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a methodof producing an electronic component and an electronic component inwhich the number of scribing processes is small and the productivity ishigh while short circuiting during production is surely prevented.

Thus, according to one aspect of the present invention, there isprovided an electronic component comprising:

an electronic element disposed on a base member;

a take-out electrode connected to the electronic element; and

a short ring residue portion provided on a side of the base memberwithout being connected to the electronic element.

In addition, according to another aspect of the present invention, thereis provided a method of producing an electronic component, comprisingthe cutting step of cutting a large-size base member having at least twoelectronic components each comprising an electronic element and atake-out electrode connected to the electronic element thereby obtainingat least two of the electronic components, wherein the cutting step ofcutting the large-size base member is performed such that a portion of ashort ring of an electronic element of one of the electronic componentsis left in another of the electronic components having anotherelectronic element.

According to the present invention having the above-mentionedconstitution, at least one of the following effects can be realized.

1) An isolation region located among a plurality of electronic componentportions provided on a large-size base member can be narrowed. As aresult, it is possible to provide a plurality of large-size electroniccomponent portions or a large number of electronic component portions ona large-size base member.2) A step of cutting a large-size base member also serves as a shortring cutting step. As a result, generation of dust can be reduced.3) The number of scribing processes can be reduced while shortcircuiting is surely prevented. For example, when four electroniccomponents are to be obtained from a large-size base member, thenecessary number of scribing processes is not 10 but at least 3.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an electronic component according toan embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing a large-size base member and cuttinglines in the case where electronic components according to theembodiment of the present invention are obtained;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing the effect such that the size of alarge-size base member is reduced by “S” when a separation distance isreduced;

FIG. 4 is a graphical representation showing the relationship between afilm thickness distribution and a separation distance from a vapordeposition source as a center during vapor deposition;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing electronic components according toanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing a large-size base member and cuttinglines in the case where electronic components according to the anotherembodiment of the present invention are to be obtained;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view showing a state in which a large-size basemember and 25 electronic component portions are disposed in the casewhere electronic components according to still another embodiment of thepresent invention are to be obtained; and

FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing electronic components according toyet still another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment

An electronic component according to a first embodiment of the presentinvention is an electronic component comprising:

an electronic element disposed on a base member;

a take-out electrode connected to the electronic element; and

a short ring residue portion provided on a side of the base memberwithout being connected to the electronic element.

To be more specific, the electronic component has the short ring residueportion which is not connected to the electronic element and provided ona side of the base member which is other than a side thereof on whichthe take-out electrode is disposed.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an electronic component according tothis embodiment. Examples of the electronic component include anelectronic component having an organic EL element array. Referencenumeral 1 denotes an electronic component, 2 denotes pixels, 2 a denotesa displayed image, 3 denotes a display region, 4 denotes take-outelectrodes, and 5 denotes a base member. Reference numeral 6 denotes asealing member (or encapsulation member), 7 denotes a side of the basemember 5 which is different from the side thereof on which the take-outelectrodes are disposed, and 8 denotes a short ring residue portion. Aplurality of pixels 2 are disposed in a region of the sealing member 6.The sealing member 6 is provided to prevent the plurality of pixels 2from being exposed to an external ambience (more specifically, oxygen ormoisture) or protect the plurality of pixels 2 from an external shock.

In this embodiment, each of the pixels 2 corresponds to an organic ELelement including a pair of electrodes and an organic material disposedtherebetween. In FIG. 1, as a state in which an image is displayed, anumeral of “1” (reference symbol 2 a) is shown. The term “organic ELelement array” herein employed refers such a structure that a pluralityof organic EL elements are provided on the same base member.

The respective pixels 2 are separately connected to control elements aselectronic elements (not shown) and can perform light emission/non-lightemission. The electronic elements may be, for example, switchingelements such as TFTs. A plurality of the electronic elements areconnected to corresponding one of the take-out electrodes 4. As shown inFIG. 1, the plurality of take-out electrodes 4 are on one side of thebase member 5.

The short ring residue portion 8 is disposed on a side of the basemember 5 which is other than the side thereof having the take-outelectrodes 4 disposed thereon. The short ring residue portion 8 is notconnected to the electronic elements disposed on the base member 5.

The base member 5 is obtained from a large-size base member by cutting.The short ring residue portion 8 is a residue of a short ring which isseparated by the cutting from take-out electrodes disposed on anotherportion of the large-size base member which is to be cut out from thelarge-size base member to become another base member 5.

In this embodiment, the short ring residue portion 8 is composed of atleast a plurality of branch portions and a common portion (conductiveportion located along the another side) connected to the branchportions. Each of the branch portions is a conductive portion disposedin a direction crossing the longitudinal direction of the commonportion. However, the short ring residue portion 8 is not limited tosuch a combination of branch portions and a common portion and may becomposed of only a common portion. In this case, during a step ofcutting a large-size base member, a short ring may be cut out so as toexclude a plurality of branch portions. Alternately, a further cuttingstep of cutting at least the branch portions out of the short ring maybe expressly added.

This embodiment will be described in more detail.

The term “large-size base member” herein employed refers to a basemember on which a plurality of electronic component portions aredisposed. The plurality of electronic component portions are disposed ina plane of the large-size base member and separated from one anotherthrough an isolation region. Further, when the isolation region is cut,each base member obtained by the cutting will have an electroniccomponent portion thereon. The term “electronic component portion”herein employed refers to an electronic element array constituted by aplurality of electronic elements disposed on the large-size base memberwhich is to be cut.

Before the large-size base member is cut, the electronic elements ofeach electronic component portion are electrically connected to oneanother through the short ring, thereby preventing short circuiting. Theshort ring is disposed in the isolation region.

In other words, the state in which the short ring residue portion 8 isprovided on the electronic component obtained by cutting is described inmore detail such that when the large-size base member is cut, a shortring connected to an electronic component portion is partly left on abase member on which another electronic component portion is provided.

According to the electronic component according to this embodiment, itis possible to dispose a short ring within a narrow isolation region andon a cutting line.

The thus obtained electronic component will have such a configurationthat a short ring residue portion which is not connected to anelectronic element is disposed on a side of a base member which is otherthan a side thereof on which take-out electrodes are disposed.

Of course, an electronic component is simultaneously obtained in whichno short ring residue portion is provided on a side of a base memberwhich is other than a side thereof on which take-out electrodes aredisposed.

Further, when the electronic component having the above-mentionedstructure is obtained, there is at least any one of the followingadvantages.

1) An isolation region located among a plurality of electronic componentportions provided on a large-size base member can be made narrow. As aresult, it is possible to provide a plurality of large-size electroniccomponent portions or a large number of electronic component portions ona large-size base member.2) A step of cutting a large-size base member also serves as a shortring cutting process. As a result, the generation of dust can bereduced.3) The number of scribing processes can be reduced while shortcircuiting is surely prevented. For example, when four electroniccomponents are to be obtained from a large-size base member, thenecessary number of scribing processes is not 10 but at least 3.

Next, the cutting of a large-size base member will be described withreference to FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing a state before electronic componentsaccording to this embodiment are obtained from a large-size base memberby cutting. Reference numeral 15 denotes a large-size base member and aplurality of (more specifically, four) electronic component portionsdisposed on the large-size base member. Reference numeral 20 denotescutting lines. In FIG. 2, reference symbols 1A to 6A denote cuttinglines applied based on a cutting order. In FIG. 2, each of white circlesindicates an alignment mark.

The electronic component according to this embodiment may be obtained bydividing the large-size base member by cutting along at least three ofthe cutting lines. To be specific, the three lines include the cuttingline 1A for cutting an isolation region on which short rings are notdisposed and a plurality of electronic element portions are separatedfrom one another and the cutting lines 2A and 3A for cutting the shortrings.

FIG. 2 also shows other cutting lines. In order to make the sizes of thebase members obtained by the cutting equal to one another, to reduce thesize of each of the base members obtained by the cutting, or to removean alignment mark or the like from a final product, other cutting linesmay be additionally employed. FIG. 2 additionally shows cutting lines 4Ato 6A corresponding to the cutting order which are adopted for thepurpose of, for example, removing portions which are unnecessary to beleft.

In this embodiment, the cutting order for the cutting lines 1A to 6A maysuitably be changed as needed. It is more preferable that the cutting ofshort rings along the cutting line 2A or 3A is performed after thecutting along the cutting line 1A for the isolation region in which noshort rings are disposed and through which the plurality of electronicelement portions are separated from one another.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a further effect of a method ofproducing the electronic component according to this embodiment.

Reference numeral 15 denotes a large-size base member in thisembodiment, 60 denotes another large-size base member in thisembodiment, and 25 a denotes a center of the large-size base member.Reference numeral 25 denotes a circular region whose radius is adistance between the center 25 a and a farthest point of the large-sizebase member 15. Reference numeral 26 denotes a circular region whoseradius is a distance between the center 25 a and a farthest point of thelarge-size base member 60.

As compared with FIGS. 1 and 2, dots corresponding to a pixel portionare omitted in FIG. 3 for convenience of description, namely in order tomake further description with reference to a lower section of FIG. 3 inwhich the large-size base members 15, 60 are overlapped with each other.

In FIG. 3, both of the base members 15, 60 located in upper right andleft sections fall within this embodiment. A difference between both thesections is that the sizes of the large-size base members are differentfrom each other. To be more specific, the size of the large-size basemember 15 of the left section in the vertical direction in the drawingis shorter than that of the large-size base member 60 of the rightsection by a length “S”

This is because the width of the isolation region in which the shortrings are disposed is reduced by the length “S”.

The result of the size reduction is shown in the lower section of FIG.3. That is, when the centers of the respective large-size base members15, 60 are aligned with each other and the circular regions whosediameters are the distances between the center and the farthest pointsthereof are compared with each other, the circular region based on thelarge-size base member 15 becomes a smaller circular region whose sizeis reduced by a amount corresponding to the reduction of the width ofthe isolation region in which the short rings are disposed.

This is preferable in the following point.

That is, when respective electronic component portions of a large-sizebase member are to be simultaneously subjected to the same processing,respective electronic component portions of a large-size base memberhaving a narrower circular region can be uniformly processed.

For example, when processing is performed originating from a point on anaxis passing through a center point of a base member, respectiveelectronic component portions of a large-size base member having anarrower circular region can be uniformly processed.

To be more specific, in a film formation process such as sputtering,CVD, or vapor deposition, a surface modification process such as UVirradiation or ozone irradiation, or the like, it is preferable to use alarge-size base member having a narrower circular region.

FIG. 4 is a graphical representation showing a film thicknessdistribution and a separation distance from a vapor deposition sourcelocated at the center in the case of vapor deposition. In FIG. 4,reference numeral 27 denotes a line indicating the dependence of thefilm thickness distribution on the distance from the vapor depositionsource. As shown in FIG. 4, the film thickness of a film obtained by thevapor deposition significantly changes (reduces) as the distance fromthe vapor deposition source increases. This phenomenon is substantiallycommon to not only vapor deposition but also other processes utilizingisotropic diffusion from a processing source.

Therefore, of the large-size base members according to this embodiment,the large-size base member in which the isolation region in which theshort rings are disposed and through which the plurality of electroniccomponent portions are separated from one another is narrowed ispreferable for uniform processing. In other words, in this case, becauseof the smaller area, processing can be performed with the large-sizebase member being disposed within a range ±b within which the filmthickness distribution in FIG. 4 does not significantly change, morepreferably, within a range ±b, which is preferable for uniformprocessing.

Thus, it is preferable to vapor-deposit an organic material forconstituting organic EL elements on such a large-size base member or toform a protective layer for protecting organic EL elements.

The electronic component according to this embodiment is described bytaking an electronic component having an organic EL element array as anexample. The organic EL element array according to this embodiment canbe preferably used as a display for displaying an image.

As described above, the electronic component according to thisembodiment has a switching element for light emission or drive of anorganic EL element as an electronic element.

In this case, a step of providing the organic EL element in theelectronic component is further added. In such a case, a step of formingthe organic EL elements in the electronic component portions may beperformed before the large-size base member is cut. Alternatively, astep of forming the organic EL elements in the electronic component maybe performed after forming the electronic component portions on thelarge-size base member and then cutting it.

It is more preferable to perform the step of forming the organic ELelements in the electronic component portion before the step of cuttingthe large-size base member. Therefore, the deterioration of the elementsresulting from dust caused during cutting can be prevented.

It is preferable that the step of forming a sealing member on theorganic EL elements is performed before the step of cutting thelarge-size base member and after the step of forming the organic ELelements. The step of forming the sealing member may be performed afterthe step of forming the organic EL elements and the step of cutting thelarge-size base member.

The sealing member may have the structure such as shown in FIG. 1. Thatis, the sealing member may be a member having an area smaller than thatof a base member obtained by cutting the large-size base member or amember provided extending over the isolation region located among theelectronic component portions on the large-size base member.

The sealing member may be a transparent base member such as a glasssheet or silicon nitride (which may contain at least one of oxygen andhydrogen) film. The sealing member shown as an example in FIG. 1 is acover glass sheet disposed on a silicon nitride film as a passivationfilm, which is disposed on the organic EL elements. When the electroniccomponent shown in FIG. 1 is to be obtained, a step of disposing theorganic EL element array on the large-size base member is necessary. Inaddition, it is necessary to sequentially perform a step of forming thepassivation film on the organic EL element array and a step of disposingthe cover glass sheet for each of the electronic component portions andthen to perform the step of cutting the large-size base member.

Incidentally, the electronic component according to this embodiment canbe applied to uses other than the electronic component having theorganic EL element array. For example, the electronic componentaccording to this embodiment can be used for an electronic device suchas a display or memory having organic FETs. Alternatively, theelectronic component according to this embodiment can be used forvarious electronic devices including a switching element, a memoryelement, or a capacitor element, irrespective of whether the material ofa semiconductor portion of the electronic component is an inorganicmaterial or an organic material. Examples of the various electronicdevices include a liquid crystal display, a plasma display, and an areasensor.

Further, the sealing member may be disposed in such electroniccomponents other than the electronic component having the organic ELelement array.

Incidentally, the electronic component according to the first embodimentof the present invention has been described by taking as an example theelectronic component including the short ring residue portion which isnot connected to the electronic element and provided on the side of thebase member which is other than the side thereof on which the take-outelectrodes are disposed.

However, the structure of the electronic component according to thepresent invention may be such that a short ring residue portion isprovided on the same side of the base member on which the take-outelectrodes are disposed. FIG. 8 shows another structure using theelectronic component according to this embodiment.

FIG. 8 shows four electronic components.

In FIG. 8, the four respective electronic components display images of“1”, “2”, “3”, and “4” for convenience of presentation.

Of the four electronic components, each of the electronic components onwhich the images “1” and “2” are displayed has the short ring residueportion provided on the same side of the base member on which thetake-out electrodes are disposed.

Such a structure is particularly preferable in the case where thedisplay screen has a size of, for example, 5 inches or more, further, 15inches or more.

When the display region is not square but rectangular and when thetake-out electrodes are provided in a longer side portion of therectangular region, the short ring residue portion can be disposed in apart of the long side portion in which the take-out electrodes are notprovided.

As a result, the part of the long side portion in which the take-outelectrodes are not provided can be effectively used.

Moreover, because the sides of the base member other than the sidethereof on which the take-out electrodes and the short ring residueportion are provided can be located close to the display region, thecontour of the base member can be located close to that of the displayregion, whereby the size of the electronic component can be reduced.

Incidentally, FIG. 8 also shows a structure in which the short ringresidue portion is disposed on a side intersecting with the side onwhich the take-out electrodes are disposed as described below in asecond embodiment. Therefore, the short ring residue portion may bedisposed also on the side intersecting with the side on which thetake-out electrodes are disposed.

Second Embodiment

An electronic component according to this embodiment is an electroniccomponent in which a short ring residue portion is disposed on a sideintersecting with a side on which take-out electrodes are disposed.Other structures are identical to those of the electronic componentaccording to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing the electronic component according tothis embodiment. FIG. 5 shows four electronic components, each of whichhas the organic EL element array. Images of “1”, “2”, “3”, and “4” aredisplayed on display screens of the respective electronic components.Each of the electronic components on which the images “1” and “2” aredisplayed includes a short ring residue portion 8 disposed on a side ofa base member which is other than a side thereof on which take-outelectrodes 4 are disposed, of respective sides of the base member. To bemore specific, the short ring residue portion 8 is disposed on a sidelocated in a direction intersecting with the side on which the take-outelectrodes 4 are disposed.

Each of the electronic components on which the images “3” and “4” aredisplayed does not have a short ring residue portion 8. The electroniccomponent on which the image “1” is displayed further has another shortring residue portion 8, unlike the electronic component on which theimage “2” is displayed. To be more specific, the other short ringresidue portion 8 is disposed on a side which is in opposition to and inthe same direction as the side on which the take-out electrodes 4 aredisposed, of the sides of the base member.

The respective electronic components are obtained by dividing alarge-size base member such as shown in FIG. 6. In this embodiment, thefour electronic components can be obtained by performing the step ofcutting the large-size base member at least three times. As shown inFIG. 6, when the short rings are disposed on the cutting lines of theisolation region among the respective electronic component portions, allthe short rings of the respective electronic component portions can becut by performing the step of cutting the large-size base member threetimes, along the cutting lines 1A, 2A and 3A.

Third Embodiment

An electronic component according to this embodiment is one of more thanfour electronic components obtained by cutting a large-size base member.Other structures are identical to those of the electronic componentaccording to at least one of the first embodiment and the secondembodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view showing more than four electronic componentportions disposed on a large-size base member before the electroniccomponent according to this embodiment is obtained by cutting. FIG. 7shows 25 electronic component portions.

As described above, the electronic component according to thisembodiment is one of more than four electronic components obtained bycutting the large-size base member.

According to this embodiment, a large number of electronic componentseach having a small area can be disposed on a large-size base memberhaving predetermined longitudinal and lateral dimensions.

Description is made by taking as an example a large-size base memberhaving longitudinal and lateral dimensions of 370 mm×470 mm. Further,when the area of each of the electronic components is 2.4 inches squareand the short-side length of each of the short rings is 3 mm, it isassumed that the separation distance between the respective electroniccomponent portions (width of the region on which the short ring isdisposed) is 6 mm.

When there is a configurational relationship as shown in FIG. 7, thatis, when the short rings connected to the respective electroniccomponents are disposed on the large-size base member in the samedirection, six electronic components can be disposed in the verticaldirection in the plane of FIG. 7.

Even when the separation distance between the respective electroniccomponent portions is larger than 6 mm, it is possible to obtain anelectronic component according to this embodiment, that is, anelectronic component in which a short ring residue portion is providedon a side of a base member which is other than a side thereof on whichtake-out electrodes are disposed.

It is more preferable that the separation distance between therespective electronic component portions is made substantially equal tothe short-side length of each of the short rings to locate the cuttingline on each of the short rings, so that a large number of electroniccomponents can be obtained from a single large-size base member.

For reference, when a base member is cut using a conventional basemember cutting technique and then short rings are cut, there is needed aminimum distance of at least 3 mm between a cutting line for cutting thebase member and a cutting line for further cutting the short ring.Further, when the area of each electronic component and the short-sidelength of each short ring are equal to the above-mentioned numeralvalues, it is necessary to further increase the distance betweenelectronic component portions by 3 mm. As a result, only five electroniccomponents instead of six ones can be obtained from the large-size basemember having the same area in the vertical direction in the plane ofFIG. 7, depending on the size of the frame portion of the base member.

EXAMPLES

Hereinafter, examples of the present invention will be described.However, the present invention is not limited to the examples.

Example 1

FIG. 1 shows an organic EL panel 1 according to the present invention.

The panel shown in FIG. 1 is obtained from the base member 15 shown inFIG. 2. Specifically, the panel is obtained by performing vapordeposition of an organic light emitting layer through mask vapordeposition using a vacuum vapor deposition apparatus, then forming atransparent electrode (not shown) thereon, thereafter performing asealing step to prepare the base member 15, and cutting the base member15 into respective panels.

Further, as an example of the state in which an image is displayed, anumeral of “1” is indicated.

FIG. 2 shows the base member 15 before the panel 1 is obtained bycutting.

In FIG. 2, the base member 15 which is a glass substrate has fourorganic EL panels formed thereon. The base member has TFTs and circuitsformed thereon. Respective take-out electrodes for the circuits aredisposed on the base member. A short ring 8 is provided in each of thetake-out electrodes 4 to protect the TFTs.

The alignment marks 15 a for masking and alignment in the vapordeposition apparatus are diagonally disposed.

As is seen from FIG. 2, each of the alignment masks has a circularshape, which is the same shape as that of each of alignment masksprovided in a vapor deposition mask (not shown).

FIG. 1 shows the panel 1 obtained from the glass base member 15 shown inFIG. 2 by the cutting after the sealing step.

In the panel 1, on each of the TFTs on the glass base member 5, there isformed a thin film for organic light emission including organic layersand electrode layers for each of the pixels 2. Further, as shown by thedisplay example 2 a, an image can be displayed using the respectivepixels.

The glass sealing member 6 is bonded to the glass base member 5 using aUV curable resin through the sealing step.

The sealing glass has an inner surface formed in a recess shape byetching, and a film of a moisture absorbent material (not shown) isprovided in the recess portion of the inner surface, thereby preventingthe deterioration of the organic material due to moisture absorption.

As can be seen from FIG. 1, in the panel 1, the take-out electrodes 4are disposed in such a positional relationship that the tips thereof arecut simultaneously with the contour cutting of the glass base member 5.Therefore, the short ring is cut away, so that the panel becomesuseable.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a short ring 8 which has been provided intake-out electrodes 4 of another panel remains on a side 7 opposed tothe take-out electrodes 4 of the panel 1.

This means that the remaining short ring 8 has been once disposed insuch a positional relationship that the short ring 8 can be cut awaysimultaneously with the contour cutting of the side 7 of the panel 1.

Next, a method of cutting the substrate 15 will be described withreference to FIG. 2.

In FIG. 2, the alternate long and two short dashed lines 20 representcutting lines for obtaining the respective organic EL panels by cutting.Reference symbols 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, 5A, and 6A which are provided to thecutting lines indicate the number of cutting lines.

Therefore, it can be seen from FIG. 2 that by performing cutting threetimes along the cutting lines 1A, 2A, and 3A, four organic EL panels canbe obtained. Further, the frame portion of the base members can be cutaway along the other cutting lines 4A, 5A, and 6A, so that the cutoutcan be completed by six-time cutting.

The number of cuttings of 6 means that the cutout of the panels can becompleted with a number of cuttings which is less by one (1) than thatin the case of a structure in which a part of a short ring does notremain in another panel.

As is seen from FIG. 2, during the above-mentioned cutting, the cuttingof short rings and the contour cutting are simultaneously done by thecutting along the second cutting line 3A for cutting the center portionof the base member. As a result, it can be understood that the shortring is left on a base member adjacent to another base member to whichtake-out electrodes are connected.

Thereby, the base member can easily be divided. That is, when a crack ora marking-off line is formed using a laser or a scriber and then handscribing is performed for cutting, a base member can be easily divided.For more details, by only holding panels which are adjacent through acutting line and bending them about the cutting line in oppositedirections, the base member can be easily divided.

Thus, it is unnecessary to particularly provide a holding margin forbreaking (or division), so that the size of the base member 15 can bereduced by an amount corresponding to the margin.

In general, the margin needs to be at least 3 mm, and is preferablyabout 10 mm when considering the actual workability. In this embodiment,it is unnecessary to provide such a margin, with the result that thesize of the entire base member can be reduced.

Next, FIG. 3 shows that the size of a base member 15 according to thisexample is different from the size of another base member 60 alsoaccording to this example.

When comparing the sizes of the base members 15, 60 according to thisexample with each other, it can be seen that the widths of the both basemembers are equal to each other but the length of the base member 15 issmaller than the length of the base member 60 by the length “S”.

It has been widely known that in a vapor deposition apparatus using asingle vapor deposition source, there is a limitation on a size of abase member in which the film thickness distribution of a filmvapor-deposited thereon can be made uniform.

When a single vapor deposition source of a vapor deposition apparatus islocated in the position of the base member center 25 a of the basemembers 15, 60, vapor deposition is performed by concentrically emittinga vapor for deposition from the vapor deposition source.

In FIG. 3, because of the length “S” as the size difference, in the caseof the base member 15, a required minimum area in which uniform vapordeposition can be performed (hereinafter, referred to as “minimumvapor-depositable area”) corresponds to the circular region 25, while inthe case of the base member 60, the required minimum area corresponds tothe circular region 26, so that the circular region 25 is a smallercircle.

Next, description will be made with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is aconceptual diagram illustrating the relationship between the filmthickness distribution of vapor deposit and the base member width in thecase where such a single vapor deposition source is used.

In the graph of FIG. 4, the abscissa indicates the base member width inwhich the center position corresponds to 0 and the ordinate indicatesthe film thickness distribution (i.e., film thickness deviation). As canbe seen from FIG. 4, the deviation of the film thickness at the centralportion of the base member in the width direction is substantially 0, sothat there is no problem. However, the uniformity of the film thicknessdeteriorates with the increase of the base member width (i.e., distancefrom the center position). That is, when the base member width is withina range of −a to +a, the deviation of the film thickness issubstantially 0. On the other hand, when the base member width is withina range of −b to +b, the deviation is approximately 4%. Further, whenthe base member width is within a range of −c to +c, the deviation isapproximately 9%.

In the case of the panel used in the present example, the film thicknessdeviation needs to be 5% or less. Therefore, in terms of the conceptualdiagram of FIG. 4, the allowable range is a range having a base memberwidth which is slightly wider than the range of from −b to +b, asindicated by the intersection points between the solid curved line 27and the dashed straight line which crosses the ordinate at 5%.

As described above, because an area necessary for vapor depositionbecomes a larger circle with an increase in size of a base member, thereis a fear that a desired film thickness distribution may not be achievedin some cases.

In this example, the constitution is adopted in which at the time ofcontour cutting of panels, a short ring is cut away and the cut awayshort ring is left in an adjacent panel. Thereby, a base member with aminimum contour size can be realized. Thus, vapor deposition can beperformed within a minimum vapor-depositable area, with the result thatit is possible to use a region in which the deviation of the filmthickness at the time of vapor deposition is small.

Further, the base member contour size can be reduced. Thereby, thedistance between the base member and the vapor deposition source can beset to a shorter distance, so that there can be obtained the effect thatit is possible to improve the use efficiency of materials, savematerials, and reduce the panel production cost.

Example 2

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating Example 2 of the present invention inwhich the shapes of panels obtained by cutting are shown.

As can be seen from the figure, there is shown a state in which a basemember is cut to be separated into panels 1. The respective panelsdisplay the images of “1”, “2”, “3”, and “4” as image display examples.Each of the panels 1 on which the images “1” and “2” are displayed hasthe short ring residue portion 8 located as shown in the figure. Theshort ring residue portion 8 is disposed on one of two sidesintersecting with the side on which the take-out electrodes 4 aredisposed.

Further, as is seen from the figure, each of the panels 1 on which theimages “3” and “4” are displayed has no short ring residue portion 8.Moreover, the panel 1 on which the image “1” is displayed further hasanother short ring residue portion 8, unlike the panel 1 on which theimage “2” is displayed. That is, the other short ring residue portion 8is disposed on a side which is located in opposition to and in the samedirection as the side on which the take-out electrodes 4 are disposed,of the sides of the base member. It can be seen from the figure that theorientation of each of the panels on which the images “1” and “2” aredisplayed is different from the orientation of each of the panels onwhich the images “3” and “4” are displayed and the sizes ofcorresponding pixel portions are different from each other.

The respective panels 1 are obtained by cutting and dividing the basemember shown in FIG. 6. In this example, by performing cutting steps atleast three times, that is, by performing cuttings along the cuttinglines 1A, 2A, and 3A, the four panels 1 can be obtained. The cutout ofthe panels having suitable sizes is performed by cuttings along thecutting lines 4A, 5A, and 6A.

According to the above-mentioned constitution, even when panels whichhave different sizes and in which the directions of take-out electrodesare different from one another are disposed on a single base member,division can be achieved by three-time cutting while adjusting thebalance between the contour cutting position and the panel sizes.

Further, even when two or more short rings were left in a panel obtainedby cutting, there was found no particular problem to the displaycharacteristics of the panel.

As described above, because various types of panels having differentsizes are disposed on a single base member and a short ring is left inan adjacent panel is used, it is possible to produce a plurality ofpanels from a base member having a minimum size.

Example 3

FIG. 7 is a schematic view illustrating Example 3 of the presentinvention in which a base member 15 relatively larger than the basemember used in each of Examples 1 and 2 is used.

In the figure, a structure is shown in which 25 panels in total aremounted.

Even when the large number of panels are arranged, cutting is performedsimilarly as Example 1. In this case, short rings are disposed in apositional relationship such that lines for cutting the short rings alsoserve as contour cutting lines and the short rings are left in panelslocated on upper sides.

Thus, even when a large number of panels are arranged on a surface as inthis example, it is possible to provide a base member having a minimumsize which corresponds to the number of panels.

This application claims priorities from Japanese Patent Application Nos.2005-180554 filed on Jun. 21, 2005, and 2006-135071 filed on May 15,2006, which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.

1-5. (canceled)
 6. A method of producing an electronic component,comprising the cutting step of cutting a large-size base member havingat least two electronic components each comprising an electronic elementand a take-out electrode connected to the electronic element therebyobtaining at least two of the electronic components, wherein the cuttingstep of cutting the large-size base member is performed such that aresidue portion of a short ring of the electronic element of one of theelectronic components is left on a side of the base member, which hasthe take-out electrode provided thereon, of adjacent one of theelectronic components.
 7. The method according to claim 6, furthercomprising, before the cutting step, the organic EL element arrayproducing step of forming an organic EL element array connected to theelectronic elements, and before the cutting step and after the organicEL element array producing step, the sealing step of disposing a sealingmember on the organic EL element arrays.
 8. The method according toclaim 7, wherein the organic EL element array comprises a plurality oforganic EL elements each comprising a pair of electrodes and a lightemitting layer disposed between the pair of electrodes.
 9. The methodaccording to claim 7, wherein the organic EL element array is a displayportion of a display device.
 10. The method according to claim 6,wherein the electronic element is a transistor.
 11. The method accordingto claim 6, wherein the base members of the at least two electroniccomponents obtained by the cutting step have different sizes from eachother.